South Korean outfielder Choo Shin-soo of the Texas Rangers has now hit safely in 14 straight games, the longest such streak in the American League this year.Choo went 3-for-4 against the Kansas City Royals at home, Globe Life Park in Arlington, for his second three-hit game of the week.He has recorded at least two hits in each of his past five games.Choo currently leads all major leaguers with 12 extra-base hits -- eight doubles and four home runs -- in May. Despite Choo's hot bat, the Rangers l

Baseball May 15, 2015

FCA Korea, the local importer and distributor of U.S. automaker Chrysler Group LLC, is recalling more than 200 Jeep Grand Cherokee SUVs in South Korea due to air bag flaws, the transportation ministry said Friday. The recall affects 231 Jeep Grand Cherokees produced between March 27, 2013, and Jan. 13, 2014, according to the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport. A defect in software for the air bags could interfere with the safety device's ability to deploy during car crashes, it said.

Industry May 15, 2015

Samsung Electronics Co., South Korea's top smartphone maker, managed to stay on the top 10 list of global tech players this month in terms of market capitalization but suffered a one notch decline from end-2014 apparently due to a plunge in earnings.Samsung ranked No. 10 among other major tech firms with a market cap of $189.7 billion as of May 1, according to the figures compiled by the Institute for Information & Communications Technology Promotion, which cited S&P Capital IQ. It marked a step

Industry May 15, 2015

South Korea posted a trade surplus for the 39th month in a row in April as imports dropped at a faster pace than exports, customs data showed Friday.According to the data by the Korea Customs Service (KCS), the country's trade surplus reached $8.5 billion last month, up marginally from $8.4 billion in March and significantly higher than $4.4 billion a year earlier.Exports dropped 8 percent on-year to a little over $46.2 billion in April, while imports nosedived 17.8 percent to $37.7 billion, it

May 15, 2015

Lee Jay-yong, vice chairman of South Korea's top tech giant Samsung Electronics Co., was appointed Friday to head two of Samsung Group's foundations, the company said, taking the posts from his hospitalized father.Under the move, the younger Lee, the heir apparent of South Korea's top family-controlled conglomerate, will take the helm of the Samsung Life Public Welfare Foundation and the Samsung Foundation of Culture, the group's key foundations.He has been working as the de facto head of the to

Industry May 15, 2015

North Korean leader Kim Jong-un visited a fish farm under the military, the North's media said Friday, without the presence of the North's defense chief, who was allegedly purged late last month.North Korea executed Defense Minister Hyon Yong-chol in late April over his disloyalty and disrespect to Kim, South Korea's spy agency said Wednesday, in the latest sign of Kim's reign of terror.If confirmed, it would mark another high-profile public execution by the North. In late 2013 Kim ordered the e

North Korea May 15, 2015

The presidential office called Sunday for the swift passage of a controversial bill to reform the public employee pension system as the National Assembly is set to open an extra session this week.The bill to restructure the debt-ridden pension plan for government employees has been at the center of the Park Geun-hye government's recent reform drive. The much-awaited passage of the bill, however, fell apart in parliament on the last day of the preceding extra parliamentary session last week as ri

Politics May 10, 2015

South Korea's home transactions soared nearly 30 percent in April from a year earlier, the government said Sunday, pointing to a possible recovery of the housing market.The number of home transactions came to 120,488 in April, up 29.3 percent from a year earlier and 7.7 percent from the previous month, according to the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport.It marks the highest growth rate ever for April since the country began compiling related data in 2006, the ministry said.April's su

May 10, 2015

South Korea's savings banks posted net profit for three straight quarters in fiscal 2014 on the back of decreased loan-loss reserves, the financial watchdog said Sunday.The combined net income of 79 savings banks operating in the country came in at 344.3 billion won ($316 million) in the period from July last year to March this year, a turnaround from a deficit of 476.8 billion won a year ago, according to the Financial Supervisory Service (FSS).Since they turned to black in the July-September p

May 10, 2015

A South Korean special envoy has met with a top North Korean official in Moscow during a ceremony marking the 70th anniversary of the Soviet victory over Nazi Germany in World War II, diplomatic sources here said Sunday.   Rep. Yoon Sang-hyun of the ruling Saenuri Party encountered Kim Yong-nam, North Korea's ceremonial head of state, during the Saturday ceremony in Moscow's Red Square, they said. Kim attended the ceremony on behalf of leader Kim Jong-un.   Yoon and Kim exchanged just pleasantri

North Korea May 10, 2015